Two-time Oscar nominee reveals he’s now ‘struggling to make a living’
Share:
A Hollywood actor, who has been nominated for two Oscars, has said he is ‘struggling financially.’. Djimon Hounsou, 60, began his acting career in the early 90s before going on to star in blockbusters including Gladiator and Guardians of the Galaxy.
![[Editorial use only. No book cover usage. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock (1596870a) In America, Emma Bolger, Djimon Hounsou Film and Television]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_148573694-1a96.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
He also got the Academy Award for best supporting actor nod twice for his performances in In America and Blood Diamond, which also starred Leonardo DiCaprio. However, Djimon said he was ‘underpaid’ and ‘struggling financially’ as he discussed systemic racism in the entertainment industry and more broadly in the US.
![[Editorial use only. No book cover usage. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Jaap Buitendijk/Dreamworks/Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock (5885504k) Russell Crowe, Djimon Hounsou Gladiator - 2000 Director: Ridley Scott Dreamworks/Universal USA Scene Still]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SEI_148573698-d691.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
‘I’m still struggling to make a living,’ he told CNN’s African Voices Changemakers. ‘I’ve been in the filmmaking business for over two decades with two Oscar nominations and many blockbuster films, and yet, I’m still struggling financially.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video. Up Next. ‘I’m definitely underpaid.’. Born in Benin, West Africa, Djimon was sent to France as a boy and first started his career as a model and dancer in music videos for artists like Tina Turner and Janet Jackson after moving to LA while barely speaking any English.
![[Djimon Hounsou as Korath the Pursuer, in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_59545477-c66a.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
After a few bit parts in the 1990s, including in Stargate with James Spader and Kurt Russell, he got his big break in Steven Spielberg’s Amistad as Cinque in 1997, about the 1839 revolt of Mende captives aboard a Spanish-owned ship off the coast of Long Island.
